Dimpho Di Kopane: Season South Africa

Dimpho Di Kopane (DDK), the internationally acclaimed lyric theater company from South Africa, makes its New York debut presenting four distinctly South African productions in repertory. The company performs as part of Season South Africa, the Contemporary Visual and Performance Arts program that is being presented in New York, September 2004 through January 2005.

THE PRODUCTIONS

Yiimimangaliso The Mysteries
Oct. 27-28 (previews),Oct.29 (opening) Nov.2, 17, 18, 21, 23, 27 at 8 p.m.;
Nov.21 & 28 at 3 p.m.
Dating back to the 12th century, The Mystery Cycles, dramatic versions of Bible stories, were popular medieval street theater throughout Europe. The music for this production has been primarily gathered from ancient and modern Xhosa, Afrikaans, Zulu and Dutch sources. The score is vocally based and the instruments are found objects, mostly from scrap yards.

Ibali loo Tsotsi The Beggar’s Opera
Oct. 30 (preview), Nov.6 (opening) Nov.16, 24 at 8 p.m.
The original libretto for The Beggar’s Opera was written by John Gay and premiered on January 29, 1728, at the Theatre Royal in London. The music consisted of popular folk songs of the time and was a satire on the luxurious opera productions of the day. It is a tale of greed and robbery, a story based on the real-life shenanigans of the “Thief-Taker General” Jonathan Wild. Dimpho Di Kopane creates an indigenous piece of inventive theater, which rekindles the musical fire of the original through the combination of old England and the new South Africa.

IKumkanikazi yeKhephu The Snow Queen
Nov. 9-11 (preview), Nov.12 (opening) Nov. 19, 26 at 8 p.m.
First published in 1844, The Snow Queen was written by Hans Christian Andersen. Dimpho Di Kopane’s production of IKumkanikazi yeKhephu The Snow Queen was commissioned by the Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Bicentennial Celebration in Denmark, and will premiere in New York City. The original story has been completely re-interpreted through a South African prism, using traditional Xhosa music and ceremonies to underscore the themes of reconciliation and the triumph of love.

U-Carmen
Nov.3 (preview), Nov.5 (opening), 25 at 8 p.m.; Nov. 14 at 3 p.m.
Bizet’s opera Carmen and was first performed in 1875 in Paris. It tells a visceral tale of love, jealousy, revenge, desire and madness, tracing the destruction of a woman who cannot and will not become what men want her to be, culminating in one of the most gripping and tragic finales of all time. Dimpho Di Kopane has translated the libretto into an African language for the first time.